Al-Qaeda's second-in-command Ayman al-Zawahiri attacked religious scholars in Egypt and Al-Azhar scholars, criticizing them for remaining silent about visits by Israeli officials to Egypt and bans on wearing the niqab in Europe. In a 47-minute audiotape broadcast by CNN, al-Zawahiri said that neither the protest movements in Egypt nor Mohamed ElBaradei will bring about change in Egypt. Al-Qaeda's number two called on those who support change to adopt the ideas of Al-Qaeda. A significant part of the audio message represented an attack on Al-Azhar's religious scholars, who he accused of receiving Israeli leaders and approving the headscarf ban in France and even calling for a niqab ban in Egypt--in a reference to former Grand Sheikh of Al-Azhar, Mohamed Sayyed Tantawi. Speaking on the niqab ban in European states, al-Zawahiri said women should respond to the ban by insisting on wearing their headscarves or niqabs even if that costs them their jobs. Al-Zawahiri urged Turkey to restore the role played by the Ottoman Empire in defending Islamic countries, saying that sending aid ships to Gaza is not sufficient to ease the Israeli blockade imposed on the Palestinians. His message also implied that a recent failed car bomb explosion in Times Square in New York was carried out by Al-Qaeda. Addressing the US Administration al-Zawahiri said, “We offered reconciliation, but you rejected it [...] so we launched attacks that extended from Indonesia to the Times Square.” Translated from the Arabic Edition.
